The Monthly Harvest! We look at Cucumber, Eggplant, Beans and Peas!

Today marks the last day of March, and with it brings Western Australia another month closer to Winter. Temperatures will drop slightly, however, we can still expect a lot of sunshine to work with; so get your shovels, get outside, and start planting!

Let's take it back to when I started my raised bed. 

If you missed it, you can read all about that here in Part 1 and Part II. I cover everything from the setup of my raised garden bed, soil composition, watering systems and schedule. Check it out!

The above garden bed was started on the 9th of March. Fast forward to today and I'm not too disappointed in the fact that I won't be able to feature a bountiful harvest for the first edition of 'The Monthly Harvest!' These special posts, debuting today, will be uploaded at the end of each month, featuring specifically the harvest of fruits and vegetables. Yum!

Despite the lack of harvest, there is still reason to celebrate. Small victories moves us forward. And for anyone just getting into gardening, positive signs like these will help you stay in the right direction, and master the ideal growing conditions for each of your plants, helping them thrive. 

   

(The photo below was taken two weeks ago. Note the snow pea at the very back.)

And Today:

This thing is reaching for the stars. Well, more likely the sun, but you know what I mean? =p

I'm actually really impressed with how well it is doing. I also planted two others. Nothing to write home about honestly; one is plodding along okay, whilst the other seems slow. I'll keep you posted on how they turns out. Snow peas are excellent additions to curry, specifically Thai, and also do well stir-fried.

On the 19th of March, I was sneaky and transplanted a few pots worth of eggplant seedlings. Amongst a few other things!

Also note the Purple King Bean in the back, which was also planted at the same time. 

And Today:

&

These King Purple Beans aren't far from being ready to be picked (they are ready when their skin is purple all over). You can also eat them raw before they are ready, so the next small one that pops up, will be having a meeting with my face (I'll let you know what I think!) 

. One of the pods is actually a stupidly large size haha. I also need to construct a better trellis, bean pods are popping all over and their weight will put a fair amount of strain on the stalks if left unattended.

I've moved Mr. Purple and all of the eggplants to a full-sun location, and since then all of them have have responded really well. I just have to watch the soil moisture levels now, as they can easily dry out if I slip up (these guys are manually watered, I have to add them to the drip-line soon).

Before I forget - 2 Weeks ago!

2 Weeks Later!

(Cucumber)

The cucumber and capsicum yellow banana are growing along really well. I've already tried the yellow capsicum in a Thai green curry and it went down really well. Superb! Can't wait to incorporate more of my fresh goods to the kitchen! 

Thanks for coming along guys and take care!

Cyclones and Citrus-Zones!

Mother Nature is a cruel bitch. 

Cyclone Debbie is currently rampaging through communities along the Queensland coast in Australia, with destructive winds recorded up to 230 km/h. 

My thoughts are with everyone on the East coast, stay safe! 

Meanwhile, on the West coast, I present to you our newest addition to the family. 

* Semi-Dwarf Blood Orange *

The blood orange is a variety of orange (Citrus × sinensis) with crimson, almost blood coloured flesh. Due to the blood oranges' red pigment, anthocyanin, they contain far more antioxidants than other oranges.

To accommodate our new family member, we have the following; 

• Semi-dwarf Blood Orange tree
• RICHGRO all purpose organic compost
• Scott's Osmocote Fruit and Citrus potting mix
• Go-Go Juice
• Max Feed Fertalizer; Fruits and Citrus blend

When it comes to deciding what size pots to house your plants, it's ideal to choose something which is about twice the size of whatever you are planting.

This will allow the plant plenty of room to grow, encouraging a healthy root ball. 

However, be careful not to plant anything in a pot that is too big for the plant. If you do this, the plants roots aren't long enough to reach the water which is draining to the bottom of your pot, causing them to sit near the surface of the pot where water is more readily available. 

That is not a healthy root structure.

This white pot I've gone with is ideal, and is also slightly wider, which will help retain more water and moisture for this healthy young tree,

 

* Shake n' Bake *

We begin by preparing the soil. I went with a 50/50 mix of organic compost, and premium top-soil intended for fruits and citrus. This is ideal for citrus trees; they are heavy feeders and love to soak up as much nutrients as they can; so compost is a necessity. 

Next we carefully remove our citrus tree from it's plastic wrapping, and gently tease the roots. What you want to here is encouraging the roots to shoot of into your pot, instead of remaining tightly wrapped together, bound from the shape of the container they were in.

Now we position the tree central to the pot, and while I'm here I've also provided another stake along the root-ball to provide it with support during establishment and the winds of the upcoming winter. I fill the rest of the pot with my soil mixture until it is flush with the base of the tree.

We now give it a nice, deep watering. 

I've added half a cap-full of the Go-Go juice to the water. This product is a pro-biotic which adds beneficial microbes, breaks down organic matter, and allows easier up-take of nutrient by plant. I've also added the a small amount of citrus fertiliser, not enough a quarter of a tea spoon.

Mulch!

And success!

A consistent supply of water, full-sun and monthly feeding will give this citrus tree the best chance to bear fruit for us, for many years to come. I'll keep you updated monthly on how he goes. 

Feel free to drop a comment below if you have any questions or advice, would love to hear from fellow gardeners. 

Thank you and have a good day folks!

Introduction; Fruit, Citrus and Vegetables (Pt. II)

It's been a week since the last post, so let's follow through with some updates!

* UPGRADE: Medium-Shelter *

I've constructed a wooden frame around my two raised garden beds using old bed slats. These slats which I found in my garage, are fixed to the side of the beds, and also secured to a stake which has been driven into the ground. With this frame in place I've been able to secure shade cloth over the top, which will provide these seedlings with protection from the elements, and provide some shade. 

 Let's take a closer look inside! 

(Snow-pea)

(Strawberries: These guys I did not look after during the summer of last year. They had inconsistent water, and suffered from no after-noon sun protection). These guys have been relocated to this new location, and now benefit from the shade-cloth above the raised bed. Looking a look happier!

(Iceburg Lettuce)

(Top-Bottom: Cucumber, Californian Yellow Peppers, Red Pepper, English Spinach)

I'll keep you guys updated weekly how these all go. 

I've also recently planted some egg-plant and a purple bean vine. I'll show you these soon!

BONUS: Kalgoorlie Super Pit


This photo was taken by me last week in Kalgoorlie, 595 km east-northeast of Perth.  The Super Pit was Australia's largest open cut gold mine until 2016 when it was surpassed by the Newmont Boddington gold mine, also in Western Australia.

Have a good day folks!

Introduction; Fruit, Citrus and Vegetables

Take a journey with me as I take you on a guided tour through my humble yard.

You will see the beginnings of my self-sufficiency journey; and along the way my failures and triumphs. I am on a limited budget, and looking to use recycled materials where possible. Everything I have today (soil, pots and tools), I have accumulated over four years.

It is currently a warm Autumn, with winter looming three months away.

Let's begin!

The raised bed at the back given to me as a birthday gift two weeks ago. The yellow one I saw on the tray of a friends ute (crazy man was going to throw it out!)

My soil composure is made up of organic compost, worm castings and various high-grade bagged soils from Bunnings mixed together. This is probably where most of your costs will add up, however, over time, and through making your own compost, you can eventually have an abundance of rich, nutritious soil to use as the foundation for your planting whilst spending very little.


Above the bed and to the left, I have fixed cheap, wooden trellis along the sides. I have also for the first time dabbled with drip irrigation using poly-pipe. This way the plants will get water closer to their roots, instead of wasteful overhead watering.



In the front yard I have honestly lost track of what plants I actually have, almost all of them have been taken from unidentified cuttings from my grand parents house. Would love if someone could help me out in the comments with some identification!

* Passion-Fruit *

Now onto my favourites. I love passion fruit. These two were planted two months ago in January, and I'm hoping I stay long enough to witness them fruit. The one on the left is Enduro Gold, and the other is Ned Kelly grafted black. Enduro Gold has been growing like crazy, climbing it's way up onto the front patio support beams - whilst the grafted one has been stunted - I think this is caused by the morning-midday sun being blocked by the canopy of foliage above.

I'm currently trying to research like crazy to find the best feeding methods for these vines. Even if I don't live here forever, the experience and knowledge I gain from this will serve me when I build my dream home with a luscious, edible garden abundant with fruit and vegetables.

* Dwarf Mandarin Lime *

This guy on the right I got yesterday. A dwarf variety of Mandarin Lime, I've already up-sized him into a larger container recycled from a washing powder container.

This fella has a nice mix of soil, and watered in with Seaweed water to help deal with transplanting shock. The top of the soil is covered with about 10cm of shredded pine mulch to help keep him warm during the nights and hold moisture.

It is currently situated behind a East facing fence, catching at least a good five hours of sun from 11am - 5pm. This fence will also catch the afternoon Westerly sun and help create a warm micro-climate for this area.

* Grape-Vine *

And here's my grape vine, looking a little sad to be honest.

Crimson seedless variety. I've had it for about 6 months, and it actually set a bundle of grapes which were ready early February. I eagerly watched them grow for months, waiting for them to ripen perfectly. Unfortunately I was beaten to the punch by birds - so I need to plan a way to provide more support and protection for this vine. It was also re-potted into this larger pot early Autumn whilst we get this last run of constant sunlight and warmth.

Look tomorrow for a follow-up post showing the Vegetables and Herbs which I will be attempting to grow this season. Thanks for coming!

BONUS: Obligatory American-Staffordshire Terrier photo.

Have a good day folks!